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The city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain, has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

The city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain, has a window partially boarded up and one open in back. It has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

What's left of the garage has become a dump at a city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain. It has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

Lorain resident calls for city action, but decay outpaces demolition

The city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain, has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

The city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain, has a window partially boarded up and one open in back. It has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

What's left of the garage has become a dump at a city-owned house at 1325 W. 10th St., Lorain. It has become an example of a vacant home hurting the community safety and property values of a nice street in Lorain, a former city councilman said. The house is on the master list of homes for the city Board of Demolition Appeals to consider for demolition.

Another house threatens the safety and property values of another street at the start of another year in Lorain.

However, Lorain’s city administration and staff are crossing off addresses on the list of houses that now are neighborhood blight.

The city Demolition Board of Appeals has condemned properties, but needs more time to address a problem that does not have a quick solution, said Safety-Service Director Dan Given.

The house at 1325 W. 10th St. has become an example of what happens when a dwelling stays empty in the middle of a nice neighborhood, said Fred Lozano, a former Lorain city councilman who lives down the street.

Lozano bought his lot from the city, built his house there in 2008 and has lived there since.

“I didn’t build to sell, I built to be comfortable,” Lozano said, and he owns two lots next to his house as well.

The house at 1325 has been vacant at least since he moved in, he said.

“The original owners passed away, and then they bounced the house around,” Lozano said.

The city of Lorain owns it; the house transferred in July 2007, according to Lorain County Auditor’s records.

Little by little, it is falling into disrepair and becoming a drag on the neighborhood, Lozano said.

In years past, the house might have been easy to restore.

Now it has black mold in it, Lozano said.

The neighbors are vigilant on the street, but that is the only reason 1325 is not broken into more frequently, he said.

Despite complaints to City Council, Lozano said he is disappointed there has not been more city action to restore the house or remove it.

“My biggest disappointment comes in that I know these guys, and I like them, but they keep forgetting, been there, done that,” Lozano said. “Again, I hear all these guys beating their chest about how they want to do something, tear all these down and that.

“Then they forget about their own property.”

The city’s Department of Building, Housing and Planning has a data sheet on the house, dated May 21, 2018.

It states the building was put on the city demolition list but has not yet been presented as a case to the city Demolition Board of Appeals.

Given said he does not disagree with Lozano about the city-owned home.

“I would state that the city properties should be a high priority, and we’re going to find out why it hasn’t been addressed,” he said.

Master list

Given confirmed 1325 W. 10th St. is on the master list of houses to consider for demolition.

So are 388 other homes and structures, he said.

The master list is an accumulation of properties throughout the city that have come under question by building or fire inspectors for possible demolition, Given said.

City inspectors use the list to begin the process of examining the properties for code compliance.

After inspections, each month the staff present their findings to the city Demolition Board of Appeals, which votes on recommended actions to deal with the houses.

“What the demo board has been trying to do is get the worst of the worst and get them out of the way,” Given said.

The master list is a color-coded spreadsheet showing the street addresses, Lorain County Auditor’s parcel numbers, owners and other data about each one.

There are 129 houses colored red, meaning the demo board has considered the property and ruled it a nuisance to public health that should be remedied by demolishing it.

There are 85 colored blue, meaning demolition has taken place since fall 2017.

“If you look at the blues that are there, if you look at the other properties the city has taken down, we’re putting a dent in this master list,” Given said.

Another 160 remain white, which means they still are pending for demo board consideration.

The remaining houses on the list are colored yellow for houses held in abeyance; purple to show the houses were repaired to comply with city code; or green to show they are county-owned or in county foreclosure.

The city works with the Lorain County Land Reutilization Corp., also known as the county land bank, to bring down houses, Given said.

That process works well, “except for the fact that we have close to 400 properties,” he said.

Setting priorities

The city administration must set priorities, Given said.

The master list includes the worst of the worst houses in Lorain, but it does not account for commercial structures that need torn down -- and that the city does not have money for.

In the past, the city administration has asked Council to consider money to raze houses, but the city has not had the budget to pay for it, Given said.

He cited the example of the demolition of the Stoveworks site, which was a decrepit building and piles of rubble at 1200 Long Ave.

The job cost more than $1.24 million, paid for by the city with Community Development Block Grant money.

“We dropped well over a million dollars on that site,” Given said.

Given said he, Mayor Chase Ritenauer and staff talked about the amount of money because $1 million could pay for demolition of a number of single family houses.

But the Stoveworks site was blight in Lorain for decades, and clearing it was a benefit to the neighbors of the factory

“It’s a matter of priorities," Given said. "It’s a matter of how we get the biggest bang for the buck.”

In the future

In the near future, Given predicted the need for demolitions will outpace the spending because people are walking away from houses.

He cited his own experience in housing court, where people ask about giving houses away because they don’t want them anymore.

Sometimes, the people are facing illness or old age, or a person died, leaving the house to family members who don’t want it, Given said.

Real estate investors may buy and sell, or flip, the house again and again, he said.

“All we can do is keep a steady hand at the wheel and try to make progress,” Given said. “I think if you look at the list, you will see progress; it’s just a monumental task.”

For now, the monthly inspections and demo board meetings will continue.

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Richard Payerchin covers Lorain City Hall, business news and other interesting stories for The Morning Journal. Reach the author at rpayerchin@MorningJournal.com or follow Richard on Twitter: @MJ_JournalRick.